Pipeline of straw men

In his March 2 letter, Steve Johnston claims to be refuting the opinion of Dave Darlow in his Feb. 23 letter. After reading both letters, I could find none of the statements that Johnston attributed to Darlow. Not only did Johnston fabricate a straw man with which to debate, but he proceeds to demonstrate the very “either/or” mentality he calls foolish.

Darlow simply claims that tar-sands oil will be transported, regardless of the fate of the Keystone XL pipeline. Johnston, on the other hand, claims that “either” we implement “long-term planning” and “environmental countermeasures,” “or” “our species will be thrown aside by nature, storms, etc.”

To support his one-sided argument, he inserts the mother of all straw men: global warming. As to his “fruit salad” analogy: If some exotic fruits were added to the salad, it’s probable that it would become unaffordable for most of those who currently enjoy it. Hopefully, at least for the foreseeable future, we’ll be enjoying fruit salad just as it is.

Don Hood

Spokane Valley